Refrigerator



Oct. 12, 1954 C. G. MINOR REFRIGERATOR Original Filed April 16, 1949 4 Shets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

(Deceasaa? C. G MINOR REFRIGERATOR Oct. 12, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed April 16, 1949 ldu INVENTOR.

C. G. MINOR REFRIGERATOR Oct. 12, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Original Filed April 16. 1949 Oct. 12, 1954 c. G. MINOR 2,691,563

REFRIGERATOR Original Filed April 16, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented Oct. 12, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE REFRIGERATOR Charles G. Minor, deceased, late of Evanston, 111., by Harry H. Gmeiner, executor, Detroit, Mich, assignor of one-half to Ruth F. McC-aleb, executrix of Albert G. McCaleb, deceased, Evanston, Ill.

7 Claims.

This invention relates to mechanical refrigerators and has to do more especially with a tiltable cabinet construction.

This application is a division of pending application Serial Number 87,906 filed April 16, 1949, now Patent No. 2,674,511, issued April 6, 1954 for Refrigerator Having a Tiltable Compartment which in turn is a division of application Serial Number 688,372 filed August 3, 1946, which was issued on December 6, 1949, as Patent No. 2,490,535. The subject matter of this application is in some respects closely related to that of my copending application Serial No. 649,240, filed February 21, 1946, now Patent No. 2,537,363, issued January 9, 1951, and reference may be had to said application for a more detailed description than is herein set forth of such features as are common to the two cases.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator of simple and compact construction embodying both a freezing compart ment for the freezing of foods and the like and the storage of frozen foods and a higher temperature compartment suitable for ordinary refrigeration purposes and which is particularly well adapted for use Where space is at a premium as is often the case in small homes and apartments.

A further object is to provide a refrigerator of the above indicated character which can be manufactured to sell at a relatively low price without sacrifice of quality.

A feature of the invention resides in the combination of a container within a container and a cover for both containers. The main container provides a low temperature storage compartment and into the top of this is nested a second food container in which a higher refrigerating temperature is maintained. The second container is in heat-transferring relationship to the low temperature compartment and is readily removable therefrom so as to provide access to the low temperature compartment. The cover is normally thermally sealed relative to both containers, and is provided with means for preventing damage to the seal when the cover is removed from the containers.

The invention has for another object a combination of a container within a container, the inner container being movable relative .to the outer container, and a cover for the inner container, with means for effecting a thermal seal between the cover and inner container, and additional means for separating the cover from the inner container and the seal while the inner container moves relative to the outer container and the cover.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings in which similar characters of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, of which there are four sheets:

Fig. 1 is a frontal view, half in elevation and half in vertical section, of a mechanical refrigerator embodying a preferred form of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a corner detail, in section, taken along a line 22 of Fig. 2 and showing, on an enlarged scale, the interior construction at the upper right hand corner of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a detail view, somewhat enlarged, taken substantially at a line 3--3 of Fig. 4, except portions which are shown in section, which latter are taken to the left of line 3-3, as will be self-evident;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially at a line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken substantially at a line 55 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a sectional detail taken substantially at a line 65 of Fig. 10;

Fig. 7 is a side elevational view, partly in section showing the food storage unit in its out or open position; I i

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view, drawn to an enlarged scale, taken at the upper left hand corner of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a top view, partially in plan and partially in section, with the section taken immediately below the top of the outer housing; and

Fig. 10 is a top sectional view taken approximately at a line l0l0 of Fig. l.

The structure of the refrigerator depicted for exemplary purposes in Figs. 1 to 10 comprises a formed sheet metal housing or cabinet 10, including side walls H and I2 and a top l3 which may be either removablefrom the side walls or margin whichis constituted by the front face of the top [3. The side walls are interconnected at the bottom by a floor plate 16 on which is mounted a compressor unit I! and a condenser unit-fla The whole structure is preferably mounted on casters 18 which are suitably attache'dto thehousing.

Mounted within the housinggisa generally'rec-f tangular food storage refrigerationunit"lamade" of sheet metal inner and outer wall plates 20 and 2| and inner and outer bottomwplatesxn-andr23r- The space between the inner and-puterplates-is filled with a suitable thermalginsulating material- 24. The inner wall plates and inner bottomjplate. define a rectangular chamber 25"which constitutes a low temperature compartment which "is open at the top for access, and the low tempera-- ture therein is maintained by a surrounding evaporatorgqcoil-,12fiqextendingstheviull 1 height -.of {there rectangular chamber and which is connected to the condenser and; compressor. by fiexiblecon- 1 nections to provide the usual circulation of refrigerant.

Extendingi downwardly -froma-themain body of unit [9 and forming integral parts of the unit are a pair-of-p1ates 21:0 These-are connected to either sidegofi theimainbody and "pivotally connected at I v 28 :to a pair-.ofi-shouldered .icap sorews -29. Plates 2! are-1cutpb1'ique1y.alongslinai'lu to permit unit I 9 to be; tilted. :forwardlyjasdepicted :in-Fig. '7.

The rear lower edges 2'") of plates 21 extend-shorizontal-ly :when the-unit: risai upright, as--i11use trated in Fig. 4, and they serve to limit the-backeward oninward'movement-ofi-the: unit; The space;

30 underneathxunit. :i 9118 closed: at. the-@front by;- a closure plate 13 I. which iis hingsd at 32? and held: at its upper edge closely adjacent the frontrfacep-r of :theEsuni-t: by -a \spring .33.;3whichi'permits the clcsureplate: to. rotate onxitsr hinge when the uniti is tiltedx: Plate.31;isiprovided' with louver openex ings 34 to admit air to space 3lli althoughsuch:

louvers may 'b-UHDGGGSSQIW if i the -bottom pf the housing is --left' open sufiicien-tly to permit a free circulationof air over the radiating surface pf the condenser." Rollers 35" carried-by-closure plate 3! bear against the front of the unit an'd serveto hold the'upper edgeiof the'.c1osure insp'aced' relationtq thaunit-sd that .itjwillnot scrapie.

thereon when the unit is tilted.;

A yrecess 36, .is vformed .in the-upper. front. face,-

of unit I9 to provide a manual grip fertilizing-the able sp ingmeans if or aiding:-in-.-the return lot-the unit to its upright position, and dashpot means.- efiective {to cushion the -returnpmovements of the;

units Thoseradjunctsiare applicableito' the struc ture; now :being described, but they have --been-,

omitted here in (order 1 tosimpl :the disclosure;-

Reference may be hadto said copendingapplica-y .tion'ior. details concerning said spring and :dash'-itures; are not essentia-hto :th'e {operation-inflame:

present: structure? and .are in ?no way. directly-ares lated to; thesubject smatter. herein 1 claimed; ial'e pot means abut itis to?be-obseryed'thatthose fear-i whi ch preferablyi comprises a sheet ineta'l 'shell though it is desirable that similar provisions be added.

Suspended from the top inner edge of unit is and nested in the upper portion of the low temperature compartment 25 is a basket-like container 38 made preferably of a material having good thermal insulation: properties ass for example, a phenol fiber plastic or hard rubber. The interior of this container is intended to be maintained at a temperature well above 32 F. and is designed to receive food-stuffs which are to be preserved but not frozen. A gasket 39 of special designandmade'ofa resilient material such as soft rubber; or "a synthetic rubber-like material disrfirmly. attachediall around to the upper edge of container 38 and has an outwardly extending flange by means of which said container is suspended onthe upper inside edge of unit l9.

Thetemperature within container 38 is maintained "inpart' by' ,conduction through its walls,

but its. .thermallinsulating properties should be such fthatr-not enough heat transfer will be effected by wall conduction to cause the temperature inside-said container to go as low as the temperature in the low temperature compartment. Otherwise the; temperature within ::container :38? would tend toward such a low level that it would be necessary w frequently to admit outsiderair;in ordertomaintain: the; :desired above-freezing temperature;

For the :purpose of i effecting :a :positive control of ;the.- temperaturet'inside container 1-38; there haslbeeniprovided an )opening 4 0: through tone wall 3i thereof and a thermostaticrvalve 4 I" for zcontrollinghe the. passage-of air through said (openings: When).-

r said walve' sis opens an interchange: of? air takes: u

place between the, low-temperature compartment and the interior of container a38g which serves to lower-the temperature withinltheslatteri Valve: 4 I is shown in detail- :saidcopending :application": Serial? Number 87,906 and-since '-'it is: not a part-of t-he invention claimedhereinyitwill not be described im detail here.:-

The open upper endrof unit -IS' is thermally sealedcwhen: iiiclosed :vpositions by: a cover- 42 filled withfthermal insulating material;- l A pai of 'continuous'ugaskets"43; 43 are attached to the underside of: cover 42' and/orinterposed between saidcover and the top face-ct un-it l and down wa-rd pressure? is brought tot-bear uponsaid co'ver andagainst said gaskets by means of several eoilsprin'gs; 44i tlie upper ends' otwhich bearagainst the under surface of top l3. The gaskets 435 43 serve asia secondary-seal when 'the= container'- 38- is :used;- since the cover also-seals against the gasket'-39"thereon-. SpringsM-ser've to'maint'a'ln' a tight joint between the-coverand-*thd-topmfl unit l 9 and between the-cover and gasket 39- whil'e at the same time enabling the cover to'rise tc a limitedextent in order-to clear theunitwhen" it is:tilted from closed tocp'en' position and up'orr restoration to close'd position.

A spring. member 45 attached to the rear innerwall of unit ls has a pairof forwardly and down-- either-:5 side of container -38land each provid'edcat its free end "with a 'roller amea whichwunderli'e then under a surf acecof econtain'era tax/and ress'e upwardly: thereom The stiffness :of resilient arms "46,041 is .zsuchcth'at: the; forward portion ofi i con-"1i tainersS 8: lisl rasilun-ita l 9 ilSJtiltBd :forwardl-yw, This is clearly illustrated in Fig. 7, from whichit will :beiseen that container:38imaintains1nearly? the. 9531116! ilevelz irrespective rofu' th'ei.positions ofi "unit? il 9; Thisuisonecessary iin ordemto preventfi spilling of fluids in the container; but it is notin normal use, it is necessary to obtain access.

to the low temperature compartment, container 38 is lifted out and may be placed on the flat upper surface of top I3 or in any other convenient place..

For the purpose of lifting cover 42 sufficiently to clear the top of unit l9 when the latter is being tilted from the closed to the open position, and again during restoration to the closed position, there are provided two rear rollers 52, 53 and two forward rollers 54, 55. The two rear rollers,

52, 53, are carried by unit I9 near, the two upper rear corners, as best shown in Figs. 6 and 10, and they are partially sunk into recesses 56 formed in the unit (Fig. 6) so that only the upper surfaces of their peripheries are disposed above the body of the unit while it is being tilted (Fig. 7). Cover 42 likewise is provided with recesses 51 (Fig. 6) designed to clear rollers 52, 53 when the unit is closed, thus permitting the cover to seat firmly on gaskets 43. A pair of tracks 58, 58 in the form of metal strips are attached to the under side of cover 42, each in line with one of the rear rollers 52, 53, and said rollers bear against said tracks and press upwardly thereon, thus raising the cover when the unit is tilted forwardly and also during the return movement thereof.

Front rollers 54 and 55 are carried by cover 42, as shown most clearly in Fig. 3, and they project downwardly therefrom so as initially to engage the adjacent top surface of unit I9 to break the gasket seal, and then'to roll along the upper side faces of gasket 39 to prevent that gasket from contacting the lower edge of the top I 3 during the forward and backward movements of said unit. They normally extend into recesses 59 (Fig. 3) so that they clear the top of the unit, when closed, and thus permit the forward portion of the cover to bear down firmly on gaskets 43. As unit [9 is tilted forwardly, front rollers 54 and 55 initially ride out of the recesses 59 onto the top surface of the unit and momentarily lift the front portion of the cover. This occurs simultaneously with the lifting of the rear portion of the cover by rollers 52, 53. During continued movement of the unit I9, the cover is lifted by the rear rollers so as to clear the unit and is additionally supported by side flanges 14.

Cover 42 is not hinged but is held in its proper position laterally by housing top I 3, and, in order to prevent undue friction between said cover and the housing top-which friction might otherwise cause the cover to bind and thus move up and down only with difficulty, or not at all-there has been attached to the four edges of the cover eight ball bearings 60 (see especially Fig. 2) which are adapted to roll in their sockets if and when they come into contact with the adjacent inside surfaces of housing top 13. By virtue of this provision, the cover will rise and fall freely notwithstanding contact with top l3. To facilitate installation and removal of the cover, a removable plate l3b comprises part of the top and is held in place by fastening means such as screws.

When unit I9 is in the open position, as shown in Fig. 7, the rear portions of the side edges of cover 42 rest on-the side flanges [3a which are an integral part of housing top l3.

While there has been illustrated and described the preferred embodiment of the invention, it is 1 :to be understood that many modifications can be made .without departing from the spirit thereof, and, accordingly, should not be limited except as clearly indicated by the language of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention and its modeof operation, what is claimed as new and is desired to be secured as .new and is claimed by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

-1. In a refrigerator, .the combination of a housing, a food storage member open at the top, means mounting the storage member in the housingfor swinging movement of the storage member between a first position in which it lies within the housing and a second position in which it projects from the housing, a cover member for the storage member movably mounted in' the housing so as to cover the storage member inits first position and to be retained in the housing so as to permit the storage member to go uncovered to its second position, and a roller carried by one of said members and projecting therefrom for riding on the other of said members during movement of the storage member between its first and second positions and spacing the members from one another during such movement, said other member having a recess receiving said roller in the first position of the unit so as to permit the cover member to have sealing contact with the storage member in its first position.

2. In a refrigerator, the combination of a housing, a unit having a food storage compartment open at the top, means mounting the unit in the housing for swinging movement of the unit between a first position in which the unit lies retracted within the housing and a second posi tion in which the unit projects from the housing, a cover for the unit movably mounted in the housing so as to cover the unit in its first position and to be retained in the housing so as to permit the unit to go uncovered to its second position, and rollers carried by the unit and by the cover and projecting therefrom for riding on the cover and the unit, respectively, during movement of the unit between its first and second positions and spacing the cover and the unit from one another during such movement, the unit and the cover having recesses respectively receiving the roller of the cover and the roller of the unit in the first position of the unit so as to permit the cover member to have sealing contact with the storage member in its first position.

3. In a refrigerator, the combination of a housing, a food storage member open at the top, means mounting the storage member in the housing for swinging movement of the storage member between a first position in which it lies within the housing and a second position in which it projects from the housing, a cover member for the storage member movably mounted in the housing so as to cover the storage member in is first position and to be retained in the housing to permit the storage member to go uncovered to its second position, resilient means in the housing and acting upon the cover to urge it against the storage member, means substantially restraining movement of the cover with the storage member, and stop means in the housing to hold the cover when the storage member is in its said second position.

4. The combination as described in claim 3, 

